ON THE WAY TO KARILLON
by Rod G
Summary: The first SHADOW MADNESS fic!Stinger,Windleaf & Harv5 make their way to the city of Karillon R&R and enjoy!
1.

ON THE WAY TO KARILLON  
by  
Rod G.  
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(Author's note:this is the first SHADOW MADNESS fanfic that I know of posted on FanFiction.net.  
I hope you enjoy it.BTW,I do NOT own any of the characters.)  
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Chapter 1  
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Stinger could not believe what had happened to him.Port Lochane was devastated by an unknown force  
and now he was in the company of a brown haired and well tanned girl named Windleaf and an odd-  
looking gadeteer construct,a Harvester unit,to be precise,designated Mark Five.This unit wound up  
being known as Harv-5.With his straw hat ,wooden barrel for a body and funny looking yellow gloves  
and boots,Harv-5 looked rather comical except for one thing.He wielded a sharp-looking scythe which  
he used mainly on grain,back at Barleygrove,but after all that had happened,he wound up using it as  
a weapon on any attackers.Barleygrove,like Port Lochane,was devastated,same as Enclaan,where  
Windleaf came from.Her garb-what there was of it-was green in color.She carried a bow in her hand  
and a quiver filled with plenty of arrows on her back.Her bare feet trod upon the road which led the   
threesome a long way away from the ruins of their former hometowns.As for Stinger himself,who  
wore the rough-and-ready attire of a roguish young sailor-leather vest,a long sleeved white billowy  
shirt,baggy dark colored trousers and brown leather bucaneer gloves and boots,carried a very sharp  
sword which he recovered after the devastation of Port Lochane.  
"How long until we reach Karillon?"Windleaf asked.  
"Keerg only knows."Stinger replied.  
"We must reach Karillon soon,otherwise,"Harv-5 intoned,"there will be death."  
"I can't believe you just said,"Stinger said.  
"What's not to believe?"Asked Windleaf."You know that's what he often says."  
"That's not what I meant and you know it,"said Stinger."If he utters that line once we reach Karillon,  
people are gonna panic."  
"Like you did when we first found him at your friend Muggin's house?"Windleaf asked.  
"Did you have to bring that up?Why did you bring it up?Huh?Why?"Stinger uttered.  
"Sorry,"Windleaf replied.It wasn't fair of her to remind me,Stinger decided.The first time Stinger saw  
Harv-5,the wooden automaton stood over Muggin's corpse.Stinger jumped to conclusions and assumed  
that the harvester unit had done the dirty deed.As it turned out the robot had arrived after Muggin was  
killed,just one of many victims of a creature calling itself Red Tom.Eventually,Stinger,Windleaf and   
Harv-5 had managed to dispose of the monster.This,however,was merely part of a much greater crisis,  
which was this:  
There was something wrong with the people of the land.The assembled trio had witnessed a madness  
among several survivors.They all realized that if this madness was left unchecked,the rest of the land,  
perhaps the whole of Arkose itself,would eventually become a wasteland.They all agreed that the   
Council at Karillon would have to be informed,the sooner,the better.Still,the journey to Karillon proved  
to be a long and difficult with monsters of varied descriptions dogging their every step.So far,they had  
managed to survive,to say nothing of triumph,over such odds.Their weapons-Stinger's sword,Windleaf's  
bow and arrows and Harv-5's scythe-helped as well.Still,they were unsure as to how long their luck  
would hold out,but,Keerg willing,they had resolved to reach their destination soon enough.  
They would have to face one obstacle in their way,though.  
There were rumors of a rock creature around these parts,but,until now,they saw no such thing.  
"Karillon is north,so we keep going north,"Stinger decided.  
"As simple as that,huh?"Windleaf asked,expressing some doubt.  
"What d'you mean by that?"Stinger asked back.  
"We don't know what's out there.There may be something out there that'd make Red Tom seem   
harmless,"Windleaf said.  
Harv-5,for his part,was very intrigued by these two.Their behavior could be puzzling at times,he  
decided.  
"I want to tell you,"Harv-5 said."We must be careful,otherwise . . ."  
"There will be death,right?"Queried Stinger.  
"Perhaps," was the automaton's only reply.  
"Look!"Windleaf said."There's a tunnel!"  
The three studied the formation cautiously.  
"Do you think it'll lead to Karillon?"Asked Windleaf.  
"It's certainly worth checkin' out,"Stinger replied.  
"I suggest that if we go in,we do so carefully,"Harv-5 commented.  
Slowly but surely,the three made their way to the tunnel's entrance. 


	2. 

Never in her wildest dreams had Windleaf found herself in such a situation.There she was,along   
with Stinger and Harv-5,facing a monster of stone called Rockra.While the three tried to sneak   
around,the wooden automaton had made so much noise it woke the rock creature up.Stinger,in a   
fit of humor,would describe the thing as a boulder with a foul temper and a big appetite.It would   
take everything the three had to dispose of Rockra.  
"Stinger!"Windleaf called out.  
"I'm a little busy here!"Stinger replied."I'm sure it can wait!"  
"This thing must have a weak spot!"She said.  
"Well,that much is obvious!"Was his reply."Trouble is,I can't find it!"  
For his part,Harv-5 was whacking away at the stone monster with his scythe,with little sucess.But  
then,one of the robot's swings sliced away a piece of Rockra itself and it howled with pain.  
"That is the weak spot you were looking for,correct?"The Gadgeteer construct declared.  
Soon enough,Stinger and Harv-5 hacked away at that particular spot while Windleaf shot her arrows  
at it.After a while,the rock creature turned to dust and all three breathed a sigh of relief.  
  
After emerging from the cave,the trio realized that Karillon was closer now than before,even though  
they still had a long way to go.  
"Okay,"said Stinger."Shall we go on?"  
"Well,we have come this far,"Windleaf said.  
Harv-5,for his part,was silent,which was fine by Stinger,who was not really crazy about the Gadgeteer  
robot saying 'There will be death' whenever confronted with a particularly tense situation.Keerg only  
knew how did such a machine develop such a personality,if indeed a robot could develop a personality.  
All he knew about the Gadgeteers was that they were a secretive sort,capable of inventing strange   
machines.They wore outfits that concealed their features.Stinger wondered what the Gadgeteers would  
make of Harv-5,for there was . . . something about the harvester unit that he didn't know how to figure  
out,something he couldn't put his finger on.  
Stinger then turned his gaze at Windleaf.From what he had heard about her people,the people of   
Enclaan,their ancestors had come from a distant island long ago.These islanders settled in what became  
Enclaan.They would grieve,Stinger decided,if they saw what became of their new home:a blasted  
ruin.All three knew that it would only get worse if this was allowed to go on.Surely the Karillon  
militia,if ordered by the Council,could do something about it.If not . . .   
"Let's get going then."Stinger said.  
  
After a stop at a strange cat-shaped shrine,the threesome marched on.Just when it seemed that they   
could go no further,just when hunger would gnaw at their bellies,they went up the hill and saw . . .  
Karillon.  
Karillon!  
Words could not describe how magnificent the city looked from far away.Spires that reached to the sky.  
Practically impregnable.The city was truly a marvel to behold.And Stinger had been there before.  
However,he left due to certain trouble with the local authorities,but he'd hoped that they'd forgotten by  
now.As for Windleaf,all her life she had been told that cities like Karillon were evil places to be shunned,  
but she would reserve judgement for the time being.Harv-5 had never been to Karillon,as far as he  
knew,but he was curious.  
"Well,"Stinger said."We made it."  
"Finally,"said Windleaf."Perhaps,we can get something done."  
"I know my way around here,Windleaf,"Stinger said."After all,I came here before."  
"So you say,"Harv-5 replied.  
"I trust there's no more time to waste."Windleaf said.  
"None whatsoever,"Stinger replied."Well,what are we waitin' for?Let's go!"  
  
And so Stinger,Windleaf and Harv-5 had finally reached the city of Karillon.Little did they know that  
while their journey to this city was over,their true adventure was about to begin.  
  
THE   
BEGINNING . . . 


End file.
